Page 95 of When the Smoke Clears

“See? It’s always the teachers you need to keep an eye on.” Leah waggles her eyebrows.

Liv shakes her head, running a hand through her hair and flipping it around nervously.

“I’ll adjust the music.” Maci turns and hurries over to my truck, unaware of me following her. She flings open the door and leans in, turning up the volume. It’s still set on country, blasting a Warren Zeiders song.

I press my hips against her and she startles, before pressing her ass into me and leaning against my chest. “Assuming the position?” I tease.

She laughs. “Am I?”

I palm her ass through the jeans, hardening again. “I can’t get enough of you.” My lips kiss down her neck to her shoulder and I slip my hands under her sweater.

She jumps. “Your hands are usually warm, but they’re fucking freezing.” She shivers at the laugh I breathe against her neck, turning in my arms and wrapping her arms around my neck. “We have guests,” she chides playfully.

“As the older one, I think I’m supposed to be more mature when it comes to guests.”

“See what happens when you think with the wrong head?”

“Firecracker, do not tempt me. Wrong head or not, I will throw your ass in this truck and have my way with you.”

She shoves at me with a full laugh. “No you will not, and don’t even act like you will.”

“Says who?”

“You! We discovered already that I’m not capable of being quiet, and I highly doubt you want any of the men here to hear me.”

I’m tired of her practicality. I kiss her hard, gripping her legs and lifting her so I can shove her backward into the driver’s seat. She accepts me willingly, moaning quietly and tightening her arms around my neck. I slide her sweater down, exposing a breast and taking her peaked nipple into my mouth.

Her head falls back and her gasp fills the open cab. Swirling my tongue around the nipple grants me another sharp inhale. I grin, nipping the sensitive flesh before covering her up and pulling back. The music drowns her out for now, but she’s too responsive to be completely quiet for me.

“You’re right. I don’t like it when you have to be quiet. I love listening to you fall apart for me.” I kiss her on the lips again. “Everything about this smart fucking mouth is mine.”

She lifts her head upright, her eyes hooded. “Cowboy,” she’s almost panting, “that was mean.”

“I’m never mean to you.” My mouth tugs up on one side.

“Then you’re going to have some work to do later, because now I’m wet and aching for you.”

I nip her bottom lip. “It’s never work with you. Never.” This time I kiss her softer. “I’ll take very good care of your needy pussy later, when we’ve finished entertaining our guests that you’re concerned with.”

She shoves at me again. “I’m getting my camera.” Even through my flannel, her cool touch reaches my chest. She stabilizes herself against me as she climbs down from the truck.

At the fire, Leah pours a second round of shots for the women. Casey happily partakes, but I suspect it’s less about the drink and more about the company.

Maci’s boots shuffle in the grass around us as she makes her way toward her friends across the fire from me, snapping photos. With only the glow of the bonfire to provide light, it seems like she’d have difficulty, but she doesn’t seem bothered. The repetitive shutter fades into the background, almost soothing in its presence against the crackle of the fire.

The conversation naturally turns to the expansion of Strickland Ranch and what we have coming up. The ranch hands seem energized talking about what’s to come, and the shared excitement is a new kind of win.

A large log in the center of the fire breaks, causing several others to fall in tandem, cracking loudly. Maci jerks violently behind her friends, drawing my attention. Unlike the others, who startle but recover, she stays frozen. The camera is braced stiffly in her hands, her focus glazed over.

I cross the distance between us in quick strides, dropping my bottle into the grass, and lift her up by her thighs to wrap her legs around my waist.

“Hey, hey, hey. Where’d you go?” I keep my voice low, studying her stricken face.

Thankfully, she winds her arms around my neck, keeping the camera firm in one hand.

“I didn’t think…” Her voice is quiet and dies off before she finishes her sentence.

“Firecracker,” I whisper, “I can’t help if you don’t talk to me. What happened?”

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